How to Change your Monitors Screen Resolution in Vista and XP at IT Buddy

Screen resolution refers to the clarity of the text and images on your screen. At higher resolutions, items appear sharper. They also appear smaller, so more items fit on the screen. At lower resolutions, fewer items fit on the screen, but they are larger and easier to see. At very low resolutions, however, images might have jagged edges.

For example, 640 × 480 is a lower screen resolution, and 1600 × 1200 is a higher one. CRT monitors generally display a resolution of 800 × 600 or 1024 × 768. LCD monitors can better support the higher resolutions. Whether you can increase your screen resolution depends on the size and capability of your monitor and the type of video card you have.

Vista

1. Open Display Settings by clicking the Start button , clicking Control Panel, clicking Appearance and Personalization, clicking Personalization, and then clicking Display Settings.

2. Under Resolution, move the slider to the resolution you want, and then click Apply. (see below)

Display Settings

Notes:
When you change the screen resolution, it affects all users who log on to the computer.
When you set your monitor to a screen resolution that it won't support, the screen will go black for a few seconds while the monitor reverts back to the original resolution.
You can also open Display Settings by right clicking an empty area of the Vista desktop and clicking Personalise then Display Settings.

XP

1. Right click an empty area of the desktop and click "Properties" as below.
2. Click on the Settings tab in Display Properties to access screen resolution setting.
3. Move the slider to the resolution you want, and then click Apply.

Right click desktop and click Properties

Screen resolution in Display Properties

Resolution setting slider under Settings tab in Display Properties

Settings Tab